The Lost Clerihews of Paul Ingram... Found!

Paul Ingram wearing a clerihew in Iowa Public Radio's Iowa City studio

Emily WoodburyIowa Public Radio

A clerihew is a four-line biographical poem invented by Edward Clerihew Bentley. Paul Ingram, who buys books for Prairie Lights Book Store in Iowa City, says he’s been writing them down for years “when they come to him.”

You know Paul Ingram, Prairie Lights is his Kingdom, Where the lost shopper stands While Paul talks with his hands - Charity Nebbe

He’s just published many of those in his first book “The Lost Clerihews of Paul Ingram.” He talks with Charity Nebbe during this Talk of Iowa interview about clerihew as a form of verse and also shares some of his favorites.

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Paul Ingram shares a few of his clerihews with Charity Nebbe

Today during the show, we asked you to send your clerihews. Here are some of our favorites:

Pabloemailed: George Armstrong Custer, Did all he could muster, But there wasn't much to do, Against an army of angry Sioux

Dale emailed: Valentino Liberace, Wore only Versace, With bangles and spangles all around his loins, He ended up married outside of Des Moines

captainawesomepantstweeted: Charity Nebbe talked up a bevy, 'til the emerald ash borer, then she talked only of horror...